At 18 years old, Roch Cholowsky had a choice.
Take first-round money from MLB. Or take a football scholarship, he was good enough for Notre Dame to offer him one as a QB.
He turned down both.
Instead he chose to walk onto a UCLA campus and join a program that would win just 19 games is Freshman year. No guaranteed role. No guaranteed anything. Just like life.
Freshman year he spent most of his time at third base. Hit below .250 for a month. One homer three quarters through the season.
In the transfer portal era, where every highly recruited kid bounces the second things get hard... he didn't flinch.
He waited. He worked. He stayed.
And so did his teammates.
The majority of that roster stayed together. Built something. Trusted the process when it wasn't pretty. That's not a coincidence, that's culture. And culture starts with your best player setting the standard every single day.
That's delayed gratification in real time.
Sophomore year: .353. 23 HRs. 74 RBI. National Player of the Year. College World Series.
Here's what people don't talk about though.
The kid keeps a vision board in his dorm room. Has since his senior year of high school. Individual goals on the left side. Team goals on the right side. He doesn't just write them down... he sees them every single day.
Tucked in the corner of that board is a handwritten note from his mom.
Four words.
"Keep your circle small."
At the peak of the hype, when everybody wants a piece of you... he had the blinders on anyway. That doesn't happen by accident. That starts at home.
His head coach John Savage said it plainly:
"His makeup, his leadership, his work ethic in the weight room, drills, practice, meetings, it's all about winning with him."
Savage also called him a "head coach's dream." In 10 years coaching at the D1 level and as a 7th round draft pick myself... I can tell you that phrase gets used maybe once or twice in an entire career.
And then there's the QB piece. Shortstop IS the quarterback of the field. You're calling coverages, commanding the defense, reading the game before the ball is even hit. Cholowsky did that every Friday night under the lights in high school. He didn't just play baseball. He learned how to lead.
His words:
"Football helped me leadership-wise, because nothing works if the guys aren't on the same page."
Now they're the #1 team in the country. And he's the #1 pick in the country.
Does that mean he goes #1 overall in July? Has a long MLB career? Makes the Hall of Fame?
Not necessarily.
But he's living right. He understands his system. He knows who he is and what he needs to do every single day.
The talent gets you noticed.
The character gets you there.
That's Roch Cholowsky. That's why coaches and MLB scouts respect him.
I'm a fan. And we have to remember, it's not easy. But we're only as good as the system we build for ourselves.
Your journey IS YOUR journey!
@CholowskyRoch
Excuse my ignorance on this. What year did we start letting 9 year olds take leads & steal bases? When we were 12 foot had to be on the base. Stealing at 9 years old & taking leads might be the dumbest thing to date I have seen on a baseball field at any level.
@Maris_Blanch It’s funny to think Player A could’ve gained 10mph in an offseason in Exit Velocity. Is praised for it as making huge improvements but in reality he might’ve become a worse “Hitter” over the offseason. Couldn’t agree more. Translation to the game is key.
Joe Sperry has assumed a Swiss Army knife role for the @GopherBaseball staff so far this season after starting on weekends a year ago, sat 89-91 with a sharp 79-80 mph slider he commanded well, struck out 3 in 1.1 IP with some serious deception out of his hand
Are you getting better at batting practice
Or, are you getting better at what the game requires?
Are you hitting better than ever in BP
But it’s still not translating?
• Pick out a target to hit
• Load when you need to
• Fire when you need to
• Yes Yes Yes mode
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Whenever I ask a player what they’re looking for in a college, I’ll sometimes hear:
“Facilities.”
Facilities are like buying a new car.
The first few months feel great.
Everything’s shiny.
You feel “cool.”
Then six months go by…
And it’s just your car.
The feeling wears off.
And now you’re already looking at the next one.
But here’s the part most players miss:
The car isn’t what makes the experience.
The people riding in it do.
Facilities eventually become background noise.
Coaches, teammates, culture, and daily environment do not.
One of those gets old.
The other can develop you into the player and person you become for the rest of your life.
So when you’re choosing a school, don’t just ask: “Does this place look impressive?”
Ask:
Who am I being coached by every day?
Who am I competing with?
Who am I learning from when things aren’t going well?
Who am I becoming in this environment?
Because a cool car fades.
The right people can build you into the best version of yourself.
Day number 873 of reminding you that hitting an exit velocity personal record doesn’t mean you got better
Can you still hit multiple pitches + go gap to gap?
Don’t let it cost you the other important aspects of being a good hitter.
If it doesn’t cost you that, then awesome